Most commercial jet aircraft engines employ thrust reversers to aid in stopping the aircraft during landing. Aircraft with under-wing-mounted engines typically use a translating sleeve cascade thrust reverser that includes an outer sleeve covering a fan duct portion of the engine. The outer sleeve translates in an aft direction, dropping down a series of doors to block fan duct air and, in sequence, exposing a series of cascades or turning vanes that redirect the fan duct air outward and forward to reverse the thrust of the engine. The cascades may also feature side tuning flow geometry to prevent hot fan duct air impingement onto critical aircraft structures. The cascades may be grouped and fixed together in several cascade baskets or assemblies.
The individual cascade baskets are positioned radially around the engine's nacelle and are mounted to a fixed structure of the thrust reverser via a forward and aft mount or attach ring. Some cascade baskets are made from composite materials, which are generally lighter and more durable than conventional metal cascade baskets, but generally require a labor intensive fabrication that is more expensive than fabricating traditional metal cascade baskets.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved methods and assemblies for fabricating cascade thrust reversers.